pumpkinhollow (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
pumpkinhollow) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
ph_logs2023-05-30 10:42 am
pumpkinhollow) wrote in ph_logs2023-05-30 10:42 am
The Ocularum
THE OCULARUM Location:
West Dream Analytics Overview
- This page is intended for RP threads taking place at or in relation to the Ocularum! Additional information regarding the organization and its workings can also be found below. -
On the outskirts of Pumpkin Hollow, where the rural Northwest Hollow meets the edges of Lockwood Forest, there is a cottage. A thatched roof with wooden detailing houses a tall brick chimney from which a rich pinewood smoke rises in plumes. Warm and inviting windows glow with lantern light. A red door with a golden knocker is seated below a sign. "WEST DREAM ANALYTICS," it reads. This is both the home and the business of psychic dream therapist Neil West. Indeed, it is also the meeting place of the organization which he founded--- the Ocularum. You must be invited to attend either by another member or by Neil himself, though they don't tend to be picky. Moreso they are cautious. They've been burned before for speaking out against the church's way of doing things. But they are committed to action. The Ocularum believes that they can settle the issue of Pumpkin Hollow's haunting once and for all, and that the Temple of Sacred Roots is doing nothing but hindering progress. But if you earn their trust, they will show you the secrets which they believe are key to finally undoing the curse besetting the island. Membership
Initiation | Due to their poor relations with much of the island, the Ocularum is slow in its induction process. Start with a simple orientation and earn the trust of its members over time to learn more.
Benefits | Those who work with the Ocularum will find themselves less impacted by the effects of the curse and better prepared for what the island throws at them. This is in part due to Neil's occult expertise and strategies taught by him for dealing with these things, but members also find themselves passively having better luck as well. Drawbacks | Neil's outspoken views against the Temple's methods and ongoing feud with Dahlia Leeds has not made the Ocularum particularly popular. Joining them may occasionally earn you the ire of others. There are also sometimes murmurings about "costs" among the members, implying that there may be some financial expectations. Philosophy
The Ocularum believes that the solution to Marrow Isle's problems lies in occult knowledge and direct action. Whether the result of an angry ancient deity, restless spirits, or a leyline of dark energy beneath the land, there is some terrible magic plaguing the island. It can be treated. It can be harnessed.
However, the Temple's insistence on waiting around for dead or apathetic goddesses to answer the prayers of the people is putting this on hold. The Historical Society is no better, focusing on reactionary measures gleaned from dusty old books. And the heretics in the forest are respectable folk but are exposing themselves to unnecessary danger. The Ocularum needs bold and dedicated truth seekers who aren't afraid to step into the unknown for the sake of protecting themselves and their neighbors. |
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Admittedly, she was a bit surprised to see her new friend standing loitering outside the building. "Oh! Hello, Ahri." She smiled, tilting her head curiously. "What are you up to?"
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Zelda smells like the ocean, like a sea breeze and cold water; Ahri can only assume she's taken up a job fishing. Zelda has something of a refined air to her. Ahri would guess that she's nobility, perhaps, or just some variety of high-born. If she's taken up fishing, that would be an awfully common job for her.
"I saw a flyer posted about this place," Ahri eventually explains, her gaze going back to the little cottage, narrowed in studiousness. "Whoever wrote it promises answers. I thought I would verify their trustworthiness."
Sorry for the wait!! I died but I'm better now
She nodded. "Yes, I saw that as well. This 'Ocularum,' as it's called. I am admittedly rather curious as well. We could go in together, if you'd like."
lmao that's okay! RIP you for the last few days :'(
Gods above, why is she so nervous? She's a grown adult, over two hundred years, and she cannot enter one little cottage to speak with the person who made that flyer? Perhaps it is because she is considering joining society in this place, and the very notion of that is so overwhelming it's causing her to freeze up, like a deer in the view of a predator.
"But it is probably best to actually speak to someone, you're right." The flattened state of Ahri's ears betray her nervousness. Zelda will be a good partner for this: she has a very friendly, calming way about her. "I'd appreciate your company, Zelda."
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Beyond the door was a living room that was arranged very strangely. A sofa and chair were next to the fireplace, with a bookshelf nearby, but blocking the archway to the rest of the cottage was a writing desk pressed up against a table in an L-shape, like some manner of counter. In the far corner was another table set up with cups, a pitcher of water, and a pot of coffee that had since gone a bit cold. The layout seemed to suggest the lobby of a doctor's office. It seemed as though Dr. West had converted his home into a business. For the moment, he was not at the desk.
"Should we--- call out to see if anyone is home?"
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It also looks... incredibly normal. Not the strange little wizard hut one might expect of a person promising obscure secrets.
Zelda's suggestion is a good one, so Ahri raps on the doorframe in a knock. "Hello?" she calls. "We saw your flyer on the community bulletin, and we'd be interested in speaking to you?"
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"Good afternoon, ladies!" He seemed cheerful. "Welcome to West Dream Analytics. Were you here looking for an appointment, or... something else?"
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But-- dream analytics?
"Good afternoon," Ahri replies smoothly, all of her apparent nervousness fading into a confident exterior. "My name is Ahri, and this is Zelda. We came because we saw the flyer on the bulletin board, and we were curious about what it promised." She offers her hand for a shake, keen gaze studying him. "I believe there was mention of answers?"
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Zelda cast Ahri a slightly confused look, but shrugged and moved toward the couches.
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She can't help but be a little wary of this man. On the surface, he seems perfectly polite -- and he even seems the same to her empathic senses -- but he's willingly based his office a way outside the town and claims to know answers to whatever mysterious question he's focused on.
Ahri doesn't even know what answers he means. The answer to who pulled them here? The answer to Pumpkin Hollow's stagnation? The answer to life itself?
She responds to Zelda's look with a tiny little understanding smile, and sits, her tail curling neatly over her lap. "What is the Ocularum?" she asks, curious.
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At the question, he smiles broadly, a beam of almost parental pride. "The Ocularum is an organization dedicated to occult studies, and by extension, deconstructing and reverse engineering the powerful energies that have taken hold of Marrow Isle. The temple, as I'm sure you've seen, believes in trusting the goddesses and weathering this so-called test. And the Historical Society prefers to focus on reviewing the past for breadcrumbs about what is going on, piecing together bits of others' research to form what they hope will be a larger picture. The Ocularum, like both of these groups, seeks only to help residents of Pumpkin Hollow restore peace and safety to their lives. But our approach is in the form of science and magic, rather than history and religion."
"And... you think you have something of significance?" Zelda asked leadingly.
"I believe we are on the precipice of a breakthrough, yes," Neil replied. "And it is my understanding, if the gossip is to be believed, that all of you are here from many different places that do not exist in our world, and have come here to avoid some sort of untimely demise. My belief is that your being here has something to do with the state of Marrow Isle, and that if we seek out its cause, information about what you all were sent here to do will make itself apparent in the process. I feel that you newcomers may be able to offer the Ocularum and the island itself something very precious."
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"When I first arrived, Mayor Poe explained to me that Marrow Isle has been stagnant yet still withering for some time now. That many people left because of all of the supernatural dangers, and those that remain are cursed to never die, and never leave. My immediate assumption was that some kind of magical force wanted to repopulate Pumpkin Hollow and see it thrive once more, and thus, started bringing in beings from other worlds. Of course, I'm only speculating."
One claw taps at her chin, thoughtful.
"Some kinds of magic leave a residue. An after image, so to speak. The magic that pulled us here must have been very powerful. Have you tried testing any of us to see if we have magic lingering on us?"
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Zelda cleared her throat. "I might, ah, be willing to help with that. I use magic."
"Is that so?" Neil brightened a bit. "If you like! I'll have to get some materials together first, of course."
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"There are others with magic or other powers here that may allow themselves to be tested. I think the most important people to test will be those without magic at all, though, as any magical residue would be more obvious on them."
She pauses thoughtfully.
"How do you propose seeking out the cause of what's happening to Marrow Isle? Are there people you are suspicious of? Or natural magical events that you are researching?"
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"Presently there aren't any specific people the organization is suspicious of. While this very well could be intelligent design by a resident, I have my doubts that anyone we know personally could be capable of something of this scale," Neil explained. "I am currently working with two potential theories that I believe are more feasible. The first is that there is some manner of abyssal or infernal entity which has decided to make Marrow Isle its home and thereby drawn a great deal of dark energy to its location. The second is that there is just something fundamentally wrong with the place itself, such as being on a corrupt leyline."
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"You're right. I'm not sure I was thinking big enough. Some sort of abyssal or eldritch entity may be a far likelier scenario than merely one person," Ahri muses. "As is the possibility of a corrupted leyline. Perhaps a spell meant to preserve and make life flourish became corrupted and turned on itself, like a snake eating its own tail."
More and more, she's beginning to respect Mr West. He's willing to acknowledge multiple theories, he has specific ideas, and he's prepared to take action to investigate his ideas. All of that certainly sounds better than just praying and hoping it will stop.
"Is there anything we can do to help you acquire that equipment, Mr. West?" Ahri asks. Getting a job and making a life for herself here are all well and good, but... she feels the need to do something. Even if it's just helping someone else with something they need for some tests.